Madrid

Här finner ni lite tips om vad det finns att se och göra i Madrid med omnejd!

Things to do and places to see

Madrid is a great city for walking and enjoying its magestic atmosphere. Here are two walking routes that also cover some main spots to visit:

Route 1

Start at Plaza Cibeles where you have a monumental intersection with the main streets and some cool buildings like the City Hall or Bank of Spain. You will see Puerta de Alcalá and, opposite, the beginning of the beautiful street Gran Vía. Walk south along Paseo del Prado, an astonishingly beautiful avenue, and you will soon arrive at Plaza Neptuno (a fountain surrounded by two nice hotel buildings, Ritz and Palace). Here you will also find the world famous Prado Museum. A visit to the museum is a must according to all travel guide books, but it is huge and you may want to save if for another time if you are in Madrid for a few days only. From Plaza Neptuno, take the street up towards the Retiro Park. Close to the Prado Museum there is also a nice café for having a coffee, lunch or brunch called Café Murillo.

Enjoy some time in the beautiful Retiro Park, one of the largest city parks in Europe. Continue your walk south to Plaza de Atocha through the street called "Calle del Dr Velasco". At Atocha you can check the Reina Sofía Museum - it is the home of Picasso's famous Guernica and, in addition, it often hosts very good temporary exhibitions. Then you can return via Paseo del Prado, with the Botanic garden to your right, to Plaza de Neptuno again.

You may also want to visit Thyssen Museum (close to Plaza Neptuno). It has a good, reasonably sized, and broad spectrum permanent collection and often hosts cool exhibitions. Once you are by the museum, take Carrera de San Jerónimo and you will find a building with lions, that is the National Parliament. Continue to Puerta del Sol, the "kilometer zero" where six main roads in Spain start and where you will find the famous clock that dongs the bells for the crazy Spanish New Year's Eve (when you need to eat grapes)!

Continue to Plaza Mayor, a magnificent and very traditional square where some events happen now and then (e.g. the Madrid Christmas market). When you have reached this point of your walk it is time for a cerveza or vino tinto with tapas at Mercado de San Miguel. This place is a very lively food market, don't miss it! Once you have recharged your batteries, continue to the stunning Royal Palace and the Opera House. If you feel like a traditional old-style opera coffee, Café de Oriente is the place to go to (indoors or terrace if weather allows).

Route 2

Starting from Plaza Cibeles, go up (north west) along Gran Vía, the "Broadway" of Madrid with wonderful buildings. In Callao you may want to stop at Café Berlin - a café that often offers live blues. Continue to Plaza de España and end your walk watching the sunset from the ancient and romantic Templo de Debod where you can get excellent views of Madrid's surroundings.

Shopping

Barrio Salamanca is the most popular shopping district. Start from the intersection of calle Juan Bravo and calle Serrano where you will get some views from the bridge down to Castellana. Check out the shops at calle Serrano and the small steets around, pass Plaza Colón and end up in Puerta de Alcalá again and maybe you want to end your shopping tour with some drinks at Ramses, a bar with a popular terraze.

Places to eat

  • Ten con Ten: definitevely a must for dinner and drinks (beautiful people atmosphere)
  • Asiana Next Door: good Asian-Peruvian experience
  • Lamucca: a bit more than a pizza place in Malasaña, good atmosphere to have G&T
    anytime
  • BAR Tomate: for dinner and drinks
  • Mercado de San Miguel: tapas on a walk through the old
    town (see above)
  • Mercado San Anton: kind of similar as Mercado San Miguel but located in Chueca, the trendy
    "gay district"
  • Mallorca: a chain which is also Markus' favourite place for getting a light lunch or delicious snacks such as croissants
  • Lateral: also a chain with Spanish-food-style safe options to have a quick lunch/snack
    (no need to book), there are several around the city
  • Chocolateria San Jines: this place, close to Puerta del Sol, is perfect for trying the famous and traditional Spanish "churros" (which Spannish people ofthen have for breakfast)
  • El Callejón: this is a cozy small street in the Salamanca district where you will find several good restaurants such as "Mesón Cinco Jotas" or "Taberna Los Gallos" (the latter has a nice terrace to eat outside). Perfect for a lunch after shopping in Barrio Salamanca.
  • Tapas and pintxos in the Latina area (close to the center, almost always lively atmosphere): Juana la Loca (pintxos bar): juanalalocamadrid.com/es/la-carta.html, La Musa Latina: https://www.grupolamusa.com/restaurante-lamusalatina
  • For more traditional food where you might bump into celebrities but where the prices are at the upper (Spanish) range: El Landó or Botin

TIP: book restaurants in advance, they tend to get really busy!

To go out for drinks

  • Ramses (also to have a champagne in their terrace any time of the day)
  • Gabana
  • Terrace of Casa de America
  • Hotel Urban (good place to have some drinks - check out their rooftop)

Rooftops with good views (depending on the time of the year, check availability), some with restaurants:

  • Tartan Roof at Circulo de Bellas Artes. The building also has a nice coffee place in the groundfloor.
  • Palacio de Cibeles
  • El viajero (for drinks in the Latina area, also serves food)

Places to visit outside Madrid

See the tab "Outside Madrid" for more information.